


A Strange Flame

by lonelytarot



Category: Marvel
Genre: Cloak of Levitation (Marvel), Crack Relationships, Fluff, Fluff and Crack, Other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-17
Updated: 2018-10-17
Packaged: 2019-08-03 09:56:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 931
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16324046
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lonelytarot/pseuds/lonelytarot
Summary: The Cloak of Levitation is a good caretaker.





	A Strange Flame

Stephen was utterly exhausted. His body ached and his hands were on fire from having over-exerted himself during the day's heroism as he dragged himself through the portal into the privacy of the Sanctum. It whirred and sparked, closing behind him in a fluttering fizz before disappearing altogether. 

The Cloak around his shoulders practically carried his tired body along and up the stairs, always helpful, always there. Stephen offered quiet thanks to the mystical item, patting it's soft cotton edges gently with his shaking hands. The collar nuzzled against the side of his face, soft and warm in the darkness as it took him straight to the bathroom. 

With a tired sigh, Stephen began running a bath of hot water. The Cloak finally put him down on his feet, abandoning his shoulders to hang itself comfortably on the hook on the back of the door after pushing it closed. Slowly, he removed the Eye of Agamoto from around his neck, placing it carefully on the bathroom counter before stripping away his robes. 

Without a word, he climbed into the warm water and sunk down into its endless comfort until only his nose and above stuck up over the edge of the water. The water felt like heaven on his skin and aching bones, soothing screaming muscles as it forced them to relax under it's hold. 

The bathroom remained encapsulated in darkness, only the faint glow of the Eye illuminating a small area in eerie green low light. Stephen had found that over-exertion brought with it a strong sensitivity to artificial lighting, and lately he preferred his bathing to be void of those splitting headaches. In the corner of his eye, Stephen noticed the Cloak twitching it's ends anxiously, as if waiting to be addressed before moving. With a faint smile, the sorcerer lifted one of his hands out of the water and held it out.

"Alright, c'mon then. You're worked up over something." He said quietly, closing his eyes in the darkness as he leaned his head back and waited. Moments later, he felt the soft, silky lining of the Cloak of Levitation on his palm. It smoothed over the rough skin, the scars from all the surgeries, and Stephen felt a strange sense of comfort warming his aching fingers. "Now what's this about? What were you worried over today…?"

The Cloak seemed to tighten it's hold on his hand then, squeezing very gently against the scarred skin as if to verify Stephen's suspicions. Stephen reached out his other hand, careful as he stroked the soft cotton with his wet hand and soothed the Cloak's worries. 

"It was nothing we haven't faced before. You know that." He offered, earning a small flutter of the collar from the Cloak. It's high collar bent forwards, brushing against Stephen's bruised cheek as light as a feather. With that, the Cloak quietly withdrew itself to settle beside the tub and keep Stephen company for the duration of his bath. 

Although the Cloak couldn't speak, Stephen had a strange understanding of it's communication. Perhaps that was why it had come to him in the first place, having found a comfortable place to settle on his shoulders in Stephen's time of need. 

He was also aware of it's affection. The Cloak was more than a magical artifact or a tool, it was sentient and alive. It felt. It thought. It had good and bad ideas just like any other living creature. The only thing it couldn't do was speak, and Stephen had long since made it clear that he understood.

Stephen finished his bath in silence, washing up and rinsing clean before climbing slowly out of the tub, his body aching from the earlier fighting. Immediately, the Cloak swooped over with a towel, giving it to Stephen who smiled and thanked the magic artifact before drying himself off. It took longer than he would have liked, given his hands simply refused to hold onto the towel at times. However, he managed, and dressed himself in a simple t-shirt and sweatpants. He had no plans to go anywhere else for the evening, after all.

The Cloak fluttered to his shoulders then, easing the pressure on the aching muscles in Stephen's body by levitating the man and carrying him along to his room. With as tired as he was, Stephen felt relieved when he was put down in front of his bed, wasting no time as he crawled into the softness and warmth waiting for him there. The Cloak waited until he was comfortably settled before fluttering over and sprawling on top of the blankets as if to aid in warming Stephen.

"You know you don't have to lay out like that." Stephen said, resting a shaking hand atop the soft red cotton. "You can lay however you like, I've got plenty of blankets." As if on cue, the Cloak jerked up off the bed and zipped to lay beside the sorcerer, settling comfortably at his side and bundling his shaking hands up in its soft warmth. 

Stephen couldn't help but smile as the high collar swished happily, ghosting against the sides of his face like the delicate kisses of a butterfly's wings. Perhaps in a way, that's exactly what they were. Stephen laughed quietly, laying back against the soft pillows as the Cloak gave him it's closest imitation of affection. A soft pap here, a gentle stroke there.

"Yes, yes. I know. I know. Yes, I love you, too." It was a strange relationship, he would admit. But Stephen was used to the strange and usual by now.

**Author's Note:**

> Tbh I don't know either


End file.
